U.S.—In the midst of dozens of key races to watch in the current election, one libertarian candidate is making waves, breaking into the single digits for the first time in the race in a surprise upset.

The candidate is surpassing all expectations, with early exit polls giving him just over 1% of the vote. Many projections had him getting not one percent of the vote, but closer to just one single vote.

"We've never seen a libertarian candidate suddenly surge to 1% before," said one analyst. "This is incredible. This could open up the door for more libertarians to break into the single-digit club in coming elections."

The analyst added that while libertarians have often been counted out as joke candidates, this impressive showing proves that libertarians are "almost not a joke." "They're very close to being a movement that we can mention without stifling laughter throughout."

At publishing time, his early lead had evaporated after he was seen getting high behind a Del Taco.